Hawser-indicator.



No. 635,085. Patented (lut. I7, |899.v

..I. A. VARNUM.

HAWSEB INDICATOR.

(Application filed July 21, 1899.)

(No Mod'el.)

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/ Illllllllll II II JAMES A. VARNUM, OF BOSTON, l\'lASSACIIUSTTS.

HAWSER=INDICATOR.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 63 5,085, dated October17, 1899.

. Application tiled July Z1, 1899.

T0 all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, JAMES A. VARNUM, of Boston, county of Suffolk, Stateof Massachusetts, have invented an Improvement in I-Iawser-Indicators,of which the following description, in connection with the accompanyingdrawings, isa specification, like letters and figures on the drawingsrepresenting like parts.

This invention relates to a hawser-indicator; and its object is toindicate the location of a boat being towed relative to a tug or towboatwhich precedes it, and the organization of the parts is such that thetowed boat can be kept directly in line with the one preceding it, sothat it offers the least possible resistance in its passage through thewater and also decreases the strain upon the hawser or tow-line, and theappliance is of peculiarimportance in foggy or heavy weather, at whichtime the helmsman cannot see the boatin front of him.

In the drawings, Figure l isadiagrammatic plan view of a portion of atowincluding two boats and showing them each equipped with an applianceconstructed in accordance with my invention in the preferred embodimentthereof. Fig. 2 is an enlarged side elevation of the bow of one of theboats. Fig. 3 is a plan View of the same. Figs. 4: and 5 are detailshereinafter more particularly described, and Fig. 6 is a modificationshowingA a different kind of telltale.

In the drawings, Fig. Vl, I have shown two boats, and they are denoted,respectively, by B and B', and in Figs. 2 and 3 I have represented,upon` an enlarged scale, a portion of the bow of the boat B and will nowproceed to describe in detail the embodiment represented in said Figs. 2and 3.

The appliance includes in its construction an indicator, as I, which isrepresented as a lever fulcrumed near its middle, as at l2, to thestarboard side of the boat B in proximity to the tow-line 13 formovement about avertical or substantially vertical axis, and it isconnected to the tow-line 13 in such a manner as to be normally disposedin parallelism. The indicator is connected beyond the bow of the boat Bwith the tow-line 13, and for this purpose I have provided the indicatorI with a widened head 14, to which an arm is adjustserial No. 724,599.(No modus ably secured, said arm cooperating with the tow-line, so thatwhen the position of the towline or hawser changes that of the indicatorwill be likewise shifted. A projection is shown at l5, and it in thepresent case con- Vstitutes a connection between the indicator and thetow-line, and one end of the same passes through the loops 16 and 17upon the upper side of the head 14. The projection 15 is providedlongitudinally thereof with a line of perforations, as 18, adapted toreceive pins 19, which also pass through the loops ltland 17, by reasonof which the projection l5 can be adjusted transversely of the indicatorI when occasion requires, and said projection has at its outer end thedownward]y-disposed studs or pins I9' and 20' to receive between themthe hawser or tow-line 13, and one oi' said pins, as will hereinafterappear, is yieldingly mounted, thereby to receive and lirmly grip cablesor ropes of diderent sizes between them.

rIhe indicator is provided at opposite sides of its pivot with thenormally-vertical arms 2O and 2l, provided at their upper ends and innersides with the'substantially l.,-shaped visual sights 22 and 23, bothbeing adjustable in the arc of a circle, so that they can be broughtinto the line of vision of the wheelman should he happen to be locatedeither at some distance above or below the indicator. The arms 20 and 2lare hinged, as at 24 and 25, to the upper side of the indicator I,4 andeach of them is provided with a sector denoted, respectively, by 26 and27 and working through suitable slots in the indicator and havingsegmental series of holes 23 and 29, adapted to receive the pins 30 and3l, carried by the indicator and serving to maintain the arms in theiradjusted positions.

T (see Fig. l) indicates a telltale which is mounted in adj acence tothe wheel-lioiise,and when it is in line with the Visual sights 22 and23 upon the indicator this will show that the boat being towed isdirectly in line with the one ahead of it. If such is not the case, thehelmsman will turn the rudder in the proper direction to bring the threepoints into line. i In the boat B', I have used the same characters todenote corresponding parts as in the other, but with prime-marks, andreferring to Fig. lit will be seen that the three points upon Sov IOO

The arm 15 is provided at its outer end with the enlarged portion 35, towhich the pin 20' is secured, and it also has the longitudinal slot 36,adapted to receive the coiled spring 37, which bears at one end againstwhat is shown as the left wall of the longitudinal slot and at its otherend against the sliding block 38, to which the pin 19 is secured, saidblock being mounted for movement toward and from its companion withinthe housing 39,

' surrounding the arm 15 at its outer end and near the enlarged portion35. From this it will be understood that the pin 19' is yieldinglymounted, so that cables or hawsers of different sizes can be receivedbetween the two pins and held with a pressure sufficient to effect theoperation of the indicator I as the boat happens to swerve in itscourse.

In Fig. l the telltalesT and T represented consist of substantiallyvertical posts, the u pper ends of which are alined horizontally, orapproximately so, with the visual sights 22 and 23.

In Fig. 6 I have represen ted a modiiied form of the appliance whereinthe indicator I is the same as that shown in the other views, and to thebranches of the bifurcated tail i0 of said indicator l secure the endsof a band 41, said band also passing around the rectangularly-disposedseries of rollers or idlers 4t2, which may be suitably mounted upon thedeck of the vessel.

Vhat might be termed the crossrun or transverse portion 43 of the bandis provided substantially midway between its ends with the pointer 44E,cooperating with the gage G, and when the pointer is in line with thecentral one of the series of gage-bars this will show that the boatbeing towed is upon its right course; but if the contrary should be thecase the wheelman can bring the pointer opposite the middle mark ornotch, so as to bring his boat directly in line with the one precedingit.

Having fully described my invention, what I claim is- 1.l Thecombination with a vessel and with a tow rope or line connected theretoand eX- tending beyond the bow thereof, of an indicator pivoted to thevessel, and a device connected to the indicator forward of its pivot andalso to the tow-line, at a point beyond the bow'of the vessel.

2. The combination with a towrope or line,

of an indicator located on the vessel and connected at its forward endwith the tow-line in front of the bow of the vessel, said indicatorhaving pivotally mounted upon it a plurality of visual sights, saidsights being adjustable in the arc of a circle to adapt them to thevision of the wheelman, substantially as described.

3. The combination with a vessel and with a tow rope or line connectedthereto and extending beyond the bow thereof, of an indicator pivoted tothe vessel, a device connected to the indicator forward of its pivot andalso to the tow-line at a point beyond the bow of the vessel, and atelltale at the wheel-house controlled by the position of the indicatorto indicate to the wheelman variations in position of the tow withrelation to the tug towing the same.

4. The combination with a vessel and with a tow rope or line connectedthereto and extending beyond the bow thereof, of an indicatorpivoted tothe vessel, a device connected to the indicator forward of its pivot andprovided at its free end with two projecting pins adapted to receivebetween them said tow rope or line and two arms secured to theindicatorat opposite sides of its pivot.

5. A device of the class specied for attachment to a boat, comprising anindicator, a projection connected to the indicator and provided with twoprojecting pins adapted to receive between them a tow-line, one of saidpins being spring-actuated.

6. A device of the class specified adapted for attachment to a boat,comprising an indicator having adjustable arms provided with sights, aprojection extending transversely from the forward end of the-indicatorand furnishedl with two downwardlyextending pins adapted to receivebetween them a towline,one of said pins beingyieldinglymounted.

7. A device of the class specified adapted for attachment to a boat,comprising an indicator provided with two arms each having a sight atits upper end and each having a sector, means for engaging the sectorsto hold the arms in adjusted position, and a projection extendingtransversely of the forward end of the indicator and provided withdownwardly-disposed pins adapted to receive between them a tow-line. A

In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specification in thepresence of two subscribing witnesses.

JAMES A. VARNUM.

Witnesses:

GEO. W. GREGORY, HEATH SUTHERLAND.

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